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2008 olive picking - new zealand style

In New Zealand on many olive groves are still quite young and the olives are hand picked. Other groves have reached an age where mechanical harvesters are starting to be used. Below are photos that show a bit of both hand and mechanised harvesting.

Nets are spread beneath the tree and the olives raked onto the nets.

The pickers are often friends and families.

The olives are raked or hand milked from the trees.

This photo shows olives "turning". Green olives progress through rusty colours until they turn black.

Harvest occurs when the grove owner is happy with the mix of still green, turning and black olives. All the olives are harvested at once.

The mix of green thru black olives impacts flavour and yeild.

Mechanical harvesting can (depending on the equipment) do away with the need for nets. The tree is shaken (vibrated) by a padded clamp near the ground and the olives fall into the canopy.

These olives were mechanically harvested. One negative is the increased amount of leaf also harvested. This makes leaf removal at the olive press more difficult.

recipes

basil and hazelnut pesto

1 cup roasted hazelnuts

2 cups lightly packed fresh basil leaves

1/2 cup ilove olive oil

1 T basalmic vinegar or lemon juice

Salt to taste

Blend all in a food processor. Store in fridge for up to 1 week, or freeze.
Use as a dip (add more ilove olive oil to make it more liquid), as a spread on crackers (particularly good with sliced tomato on top), or as a dressing for pasta (either alone, or with chopped tomato and brie or camembert cheese).

vinaigrette salad dressing

In a screw-top jar pour in:

1/3 volume vinegar (red wine vinegar, basalmic vinegar, cider vinegar are all nice)

2/3 volume ilove olive oil

2 cloves crushed garlic

1 t mustard (whole grain or Dijon)

1 t honey

Salt and pepper to taste

Put the lid onto the jar tightly, and shake well. Store in the fridge.

marinated olives

Soak pickled olives in fresh water for 24-48 hours in the fridge.
Mix up a basic vinaigrette dressing (1/3 C white or red wine vinegar, cider vinegar or basalmic vinegar; 2/3 C ilove olive oil) and add salt and pepper to taste, 2-3 cloves crushed garlic, fresh herbs to taste (rosemary and thyme are particularly nice).

Pour the dressing over the drained olives.

Leave to marinate in a jar for as long as you can – at least 24 hours, but will keep for weeks in the fridge. The flavour just keeps getting better and better.